Sunset
by SuperSuperMagicMe
Summary: Oneshot. Lei x Veedua, in which Lei is made happy and there is a pretty sunset.


**Notes**: Yadder yadder yadder. I don't own MeruPuri. Obviously, as I'm writing on a site called FanFiction...  
This is a oneshot. You'll just have to imagine the end result!

**Sunset**

The light was roseate and warm, flooding in through the huge windows and giving everything it met a rich lustre. The woman sitting very upright at the dressing table was particularly affected by this, at least in the eyes of her silent observer, her skin given soft tones by the pink and gold of sunset. She had her back to the door and so was unaware that she was watched as she pulled the pin from her dark hair and let it cascade down her back, moving her head slightly to shake it free. Placing the hairpin on the table in front of her she sighed slightly and allowed her shoulders to sag in a tiny movement that hardly showed, except in that her previous dignity seemed a little relaxed.

The figure in the doorway, still otherwise motionless, allowed himself a discreet smile. To him, this picture was perfect. He couldn't imagine anything he would rather gaze at, and it was made even better by the fact he could smell the slight scent of perfume in the air and hear the faint rustle of a silk gown as his idol moved.

Lei wasn't sure how long he had stood there for. It was long enough for the sun to have moved a tiny amount, and to suddenly be right in his eyes. He instinctively raised a hand to block it before realising that it was in view of the mirror on the dressing table. His quick movement out of the way again was in fact what caught the eye of the lady at the table, who until now had been writing a letter. Veedua spun, her eyes at first blazing with indignation, then on recognising Lei her face went through the expressions of interest, quickly covered by amusement, masked with mock severity. To Lei it seemed like an hour she remained staring at him, for once allowing him to enjoy the electricity of eye contact. Although his focus never shifted, he was aware that she bit her lower lip as though to taunt him and he unconsciously moistened his own. She broke the spell suddenly by standing up and walking quickly towards him. He remained frozen, as though she was examining him. Stopping when she was close enough for him to just feel her breath on his face she said, without her voice betraying any hint of warmth,

"What do you think you are doing in my room?" Lei's lips parted but no sound emerged. He dropped his eyes and stared at a fixed point on the floor. "Watching me?"

"Not _watching,_" Lei blurted out. "Looking. Not watching." The Queen gave an impatient laugh.

"It's all the same. Whatever you want to call it. Now get out." He turned towards the door and had his hand on the handle when she said quickly, her tone entirely changed, "No – wait – just a minute. Help me take off my necklace first. I can't undo the clasp." Lei turned back into the room the very picture of neutral servitude, his jubilance at this command well under control. Veedua sat down at the stool again in front of the dressing table and he followed. Her reflection looked expectantly at him from the mirror, only the minute tilting of an eyebrow hinting that she secretly exulted in having him so utterly at her beck and call. He paused momentarily, hoping she would move her hair off her neck and out of the way, but she made no attempt to do so. The eyebrow tilted a little more. With an inward sigh he carefully slid his hands under her hair and gently pulled it onto her shoulder. He allowed one finger to trace back across the ivory skin at the base of her neck to her spine before realising that she wasn't wearing a necklace. Highly trained as he was, Lei instinctively hid his confusion. He surmised that she had obviously done this on purpose, and was hoping he would take the bait. Which clearly, given his high level of discretion as a royal servant, he would not be doing.

Hook, line, and proverbial sinker.

He slid the tips of his elegant fingers from the base of the queen's neck upwards until he was gently massaging her scalp. Looking down at her, he thought he detected the hint of goosebumps. _She's enjoying it, then._ He realised suddenly that he seemed to be looking down her dress, and his head snapped back up quickly. Not so much his eyes couldn't wander, though. His fingertips worked their way down from her hair, back down her neck and onto her shoulders. He rubbed with more pressure and she gave an almost inaudible sigh, leaning back in her chair so that her head rested against his chest. This, combined with her warm scent and quiet occasional deep breath, made Lei realise a fraction too late that perhaps he should bite his lip or at least look away. Almost unconsciously his left hand stroked its way along Veedua's collarbone and touched her throat before his nails traced the lightest of patterns downwards towards the top of her dress. Lei bent his head down towards her, feeling her hair tickle his lips, and curled his right arm loosely around her neck. The fingers of his other hand found the hollow of her chest and the side brushed the warm softness of her breast. He saw her smile to herself and his mind suddenly filled with memories of all the times she had teased him; all the times she had almost allowed him to do something like this and at the last minute laughed at him. _Now, _he thought. _Now would be the perfect time to show her what it feels like. Now, while she's enjoying it._ He tried to bring his hand back upwards and found that he couldn't. It was as though his left arm was powerless except to go on drawing gentle circles on her silky, warm skin. He couldn't rebel against this amazing good fortune; it would be ungrateful, he lazily reasoned.

The sunset was becoming ever more red, the gold fading as night began its descent. The queen sat forward with a quick jerk as though shaking off sleep, though she had been perfectly awake the whole time. Lei sprang backwards in alarm and only averted disaster by making himself fall sideways, thus avoiding disastrous contact with an expensive vase on a shelf. Looking up, annoyed, he caught sight of Veedua's face in the mirror. Her expression was, to his surprise, embarrassment and concern. Then he noticed the other face in the mirror. It was shocked and pink and it belonged to Jeile.


End file.
